After more than two weeks of more than 1,000 new daily cases of COVID-19, Dallas County is finally seeing a downward trend. But the county is not in the clear and is still seeing the residual impact of such high numbers. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins said we can’t afford to let our guards down now.
“Staying six feet apart, avoiding those unnecessary trips is working,” said Jenkins.
For several days the daily reports of new COVID-19 cases have been below 1,000, with 537 cases reported Thursday. Still, there are areas of concern.
“We need those hospital numbers to go down,” Jenkins said.
Jenkins said the number of deaths and hospitalizations are trailing indicators of a previous spike in cases. Reports from the Texas Department of State Health Services show, statewide, hospitalizations are down compared to five days ago. However, in DFW, that number is up just slightly compared to five days ago. But as the cases decrease, there’s optimism those numbers will as well.
“A few weeks later the hospital numbers will have a similar drop we hope,” said Jenkins. “Because it takes people a while to work through the disease process to from testing positive, to being in the hospital to being on a ventilator.”
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Most recently, the Judge issued an order closing topless bars and cigar lounges. He said the trend must continue before those are reversed.
“We need to see good declines here,” he said. “What the doctors say is look for 14-day declines.”
He said if the numbers continue in the direction they’re going, we should not expect additional closures.
*Map locations are approximate, central locations for the city and are not meant to indicate where actual infected people live.
